Sunday

300 million years ago, a shift in
the tectonic plates caused a huge basin to form off the coasts of
what would become Mexico, and the southwest United States. The dry
land there became an inland gulf when the basin filled with water
from the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. You might not catch a
dinosaur there today, but the Gulf of Mexico is still a good place to
catch some monstrous fish.

The Gulf of Mexico, as the name
suggests, lies off of the coasts of eastern Mexico, and the U.S.
states of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. It is
bounded on the southern end by the island of Cuba. There are two
outlets, the Florida Straits between Florida and Cuba, and the
YucatanChannel between Mexico and Cuba. Since it is
somewhat sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean, the Gulf has mild tides,
but does get an occasional hurricane, some quite severe.

The Gulf of Mexico is situated
along prime migratory routes for many game-fish, and is one of the
worlds premier deep sea fisheries. The deepest part of the Gulf is
14, 383 feet at the Sigsby Deep, approximately 200 miles
southeast of Brownsville, Tx. From most of the Gulf Coast, world
class Blue-Water fishing is only a few hours away. In some places, it
is possible to catch marlin and tuna, and still be able to see land.
The Gulf abounds with good populations of Blue, and White Marlin,
sailfish, albacore, tuna, and dorado. Inshore fisherman will discover
that the Gulf has a huge population of redfish, speckled trout,
various sea basses and groupers, bluefish, mackerel, bonefish and
pompano. And most of these are not too hard to catch if you know a
few Gulf of Mexico fishing tips.

For the most part, fishing for
almost all species is best during the warm months of the year.

Yellowfin Tuna make an appearance
in early spring, and the marlin, dorado, and bluefin are never far
behind.

Trolling the Gulf with ribbonfish
has produced many record marlins.

The Gulf coasts off of Texas and
Florida are famous for calm waters, and numerous reefs, shipwrecks,
and ledges. This is where snappers, and other reef-type fish hang
out.

Fishing behind shrimp boats
(especially when they are culling their catches) can result in fast
and furious fishing for all species. Be sure to stay way back from
them to avoid tangling up in any nets they may still have out.
Always be a courteous angler.

The Gulf Coast can provide some of
the best fishing you may ever have, if you keep in mind these Gulf of
Mexico fishing tips.